Brooke DiDonato: Using Surrealism to Distort Reality

Born in Ohio, USA, in 1990, Brooke DiDonato earned a BA in photojournalism from Kent State University. She began her career post-college, shifting from journalism to personal, surreal work. Her breakthrough came in 2013 with a viral Flickr portfolio featuring distorted everyday scenes. Now based in Austin, Texas, her decade-long career includes exhibitions like Fotografiska NYC in 2022. Her work stands out for soft pastels and twisted anomalies, creating unsettling yet pleasing visuals.

Primary Genres: Fine Art Photography, Conceptual Photography
Primary Photography Style: Surrealism (narrative, twisted) – Builds story-driven images with distorted, everyday elements for subtle unease; Expressionism (subtle, psychological) – Evokes emotion through understated anomalies in familiar settings.
Key Message: DiDonato bends reality to explore emotion, crafting surreal vignettes that unsettle with quiet oddity and probe the subconscious.

DiDonato’s subjects often include human figures in domestic or extreme landscapes, distorted by anomalies like intertwined bodies or malleable fences. Her aesthetic focuses on soft greens, beiges, and pinks, with textures like carpet, leaves, or skin adding tactile intrigue. She shoots digitally, staging scenes in real spaces with props like mirrors or buckets, using natural light from windows or overcast skies for a muted, grounded feel. Minimal editing in Photoshop blends elements subtly, keeping the surreal tied to reality. Her work is presented in midsized prints at galleries like KINDL Berlin (2018) and online series like As Usual (2018), inviting personal interpretation.

For intermediate photographers, DiDonato’s style teaches conceptual storytelling through distortion. Her digital workflow offers flexibility for compositing, unlike film’s fixed outcomes. Natural light management echoes tonal control techniques, adapted for subtle colours to evoke mood. Try staging everyday scenes with unusual props and minimal edits to explore psychological themes, using soft light for depth.

Accolades:
- Exhibited at Fotografiska NYC (2022)
- Exhibited at KINDL Berlin (2018)
- Southeast Museum of Photography permanent collection
- Featured in Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue

Trivia:
- Inspired by anxiety dreams.
- Uses thrift store finds for props.
- Loves David Lynch’s unease.
- Relocated to Austin, Texas, in 2022.

Lessons from this Photographer:

DiDonato’s work shows how distorting familiar scenes can evoke emotion, using props to create subtle anomalies. Her natural light and minimal editing teach authenticity, encouraging photographers to plan staging for narrative impact. Intermediate shooters can apply her methods by blending everyday elements in unusual ways, shifting to a mindset of psychological exploration through composition and light.